Awera

Part of Questions people ask

Getting started

Does it work with my existing cameras?

The short answer is yes. There is nothing to rip out and replace.

17 Jul 2026Updated 4 Sep 20262 min read

Does it work with my existing cameras?

It is always the first question, and it is the right one to ask: do I have to buy all new cameras? No. Awera is built to work with the cameras you already own.

If your cameras are already on the network, you are set

Nearly every modern CCTV camera speaks a standard language - RTSP or ONVIF - and runs through an NVR or DVR. Awera connects to those existing feeds. That covers Hikvision, Dahua, CP Plus, Reolink, and effectively any RTSP/ONVIF camera on the market. It is the same setup whether the cameras are in an apartment community, a warehouse or a school.

YOUR PREMISESAwera deviceyour recorder keeps the footage - only what matters is sent on, encrypted

What actually changes

Nothing gets torn out. The Awera device connects to the feeds you already have on site and does the watching - understanding what it sees, not just recording it. Your recorder keeps the footage; the box does the first check on site and sends only the moments that need a look, encrypted. No rewiring, no new cameras, no upload of your continuous video.

Keep your cameras. Add the brain.

The one honest check

What about my recorder and my internet?

YOUR PREMISESyour NVR / DVRkeeps the footageAwera devicelocal check · blur · encryptlockedAweraunderstands the momentALERTyour phoneonly the moments that matter travel, encrypted - your recorder keeps the footage

Your existing NVR or DVR keeps doing its job - recording, exactly as it does today. Awera reads the same feeds alongside it. And because the device does the first check on site, your continuous video is never streamed, so it does not eat your internet connection. Only small, encrypted clips of the moments that matter are sent on, and the alert comes back to your phone.

Occasionally a camera is offline, misaimed, or quietly recording nothing - and you would want to know that regardless. That is exactly what day one of the trial is for: we check every camera and confirm what is compatible. Almost always, it all is.

Written byNeha Ravichandar

Neha writes about CCTV intelligence for Awera: what cameras can notice, what they cannot, and what that means for the people responsible for a building.

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